Birds of prey, birds of prey or birds of prey, inhabit all the world's continents except Antarctica. As top predators, they are very sensitive to changes in their environment. They have a wide variety of body adaptations that make them excellent air predators and clearly differentiate them from other groups of birds. Their vision, beak, claws and other anatomical features allow them to be relentless hunters capable of tearing the skin of their prey. They feed on vertebrates that hunt during the day or at night, depending on the species and group to which they belong, although many species also supplement their diet by consuming insects and other food sources.
If you want to continue learning about the characteristics of birds of prey or birds of prey, continue reading this article on our site because we will tell you everything.
Characteristics of birds of prey
Birds of prey have a carnivorous diet and have different anatomical adaptations in relation to this type of feeding that clearly differentiate them from the rest bird's. These characteristics of birds of prey are the following:
- Vision: They have binocular vision and rely on their sense of sight to find their food. Compared to the size of their heads, their eyes are very large, accounting for about 15% of their weight. A curious fact is that owls have the ability to move their heads up to 270 degrees from their frontal axis to have greater visibility.
- Pico: is one of the most characteristic features of these birds and, therefore, is used to distinguish them from other groups of birds. birds. They have strong hooked beaks with sharp, cutting edges. With the beak they tear the meat and some species use it directly to kill their prey.
- Patas: they are strong and muscular and have sharp claws whose thickness, size and curvature vary according to the species and the prey they consume. Most birds of prey have three toes pointing forward and one pointing backwards (legs anisodactyls). In some cases, such as certain species of owls or the osprey (Pandion haliaetus), they can point two fingers forward and two backwards. In this way, the surface contact area of the extended leg is increased before it comes into contact with the prey. In the case of owls, it also gives them an advantage when they hunt at night.
- Hearing: In general, birds have a highly developed hearing system. In the case of birds of prey, it is particularly acute, since, along with other techniques, they use this sense to locate their potential prey, especially species that hunt in the dark. Species like the harpy eagle (Harpia harpyja), for example, which hunt in dense forests and jungles, use sounds to locate their prey. Like owls and other raptors, they have a facial disc (disk-shaped feathers encircling their face) that helps direct sound waves to the ears to amplify them, as if we were placing our hands behind our ears. In the particular case of owls, unlike most birds, they have large hearing openings, which makes them excellent nocturnal hunters, since many species can locate and capture their prey in total darkness using only sounds.
- Digestive system: as part of their digestive system they have a crop, which is a dilation of the esophagus and serves to store food (here no digestion). In the case of birds of prey, and like other species of granivorous birds, this structure is bag-shaped. In the crop, remains of prey are stored that they cannot digest, such as feathers, nails or the exoskeletons of some invertebrates that they ingest. In these cases, pellets or pellets are formed from the undigested remains, which are later regurgitated or vomited.
- Wings: they have a rounded shape in species that hunt in closed environments such as forests or jungles, this allows them to maneuver between the trees and the dense vegetation. On the other hand, species from open areas have more elongated and pointed wings. In addition, their plumage is very cryptic, which allows them to perfectly camouflage themselves in the environments where they live and hunt.
Types of birds of prey
Birds of prey, or birds of prey, are divided into two groups made up of orders that, although they share certain characteristics of raptors, are not taxonomically related to each other. Thus, they are distant species at the taxonomic level that share similarities, in this case the way of hunting. The types of birds of prey are:
- Diurnal birds of prey: there are species included in the orders Falconiformes and Accipitriformes, such as eagles, kites, falcons and the like.
- Night birds of prey: These are species belonging to the order Strigiformes, birds such as owls, owls, tawny owls and similar species. However, it should be noted that within this order there are some species whose behaviors are also diurnal.
Names and examples of diurnal birds of prey
Remember that within the diurnal birds of prey we find the orders Falconiformes and Accipitriformes, each with their corresponding families and genera. The order Falconiformes includes a total of five families:
- Cathartidae
- Pandionidae
- Accipitridae
- Sagittariidae
- Falconidae
For its part, the order Accipitriformes is made up of four families:
- Accipitridae
- Cathartidae
- Pandionidae
- Sagittariidae
Below, we show some examples of diurnal birds of prey with their main characteristics:
Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus)
Native to North America and belonging to the order of the accipitiformes, it has a relatively large size, reaching more than 2 meters wingspanIt is a top predator in the areas it inhabits, which can range from swamps and forests to deserts. It is common for it to steal prey from the osprey (Pandion haliaetus), which it chases and harasses. This is a very unique species due to its size and the white cap on its head that characterizes it so much.
Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus)
This species belongs to the order of the falconiformes and has about 19 subspecies that are distributed throughout the world, that is, that they are cosmopolitan. It measures about 60 cm and its wingspan is about 120 cm. This bird of prey is striking for its barred design and dark color on its head, like a mask.
Harpy Eagle (Harpia harpyja)
It is one of the largest species of eagles that exist, reaching a length of one meter, with a wing span of more than two metersand with claws that can reach more than 15 cm in length. It belongs to the order of the accipitiformes and inhabits rain forests of the Neotropics, from southern Mexico to northern Argentina. Very striking, not only because of its large size, but also because of its plumage, which when it feels threatened, bristles around the head, forming a kind of crown.
Golden Eagle (Aquila chrysaetos)
This is a cosmopolitan species that inhabits mountainous areas and areas of rocky cliffs where it prefers to nest. It is a large species, with a wingspan of more than 2 meters and around 90 cm in length.
If you want to expand your knowledge about eagles, don't miss this other article: "Characteristics of eagles".
Giant Picargo (Haliaeetus pelagicus)
It is a sea bird of prey that inhabits sea areas, lakes or rivers in Japan, Korea, China and parts of Russia. It is the heaviest raptor, reaching weighing more than 9 kg, with a wingspan of more than 2 meters and one meter in length, being next to the eagle harpy one of the largest birds in the world. Being a sea bird of prey, it feeds mainly on salmon, for which it has a huge beak adapted to cut the hard skin of these fish.
Names and examples of nocturnal birds of prey
Within the group of nocturnal birds of prey we find the order Strigiformes, which has only two families:
- Tytonidae
- Strigidae
Within the Tytonidae family we find the owls, so that the rest of nocturnal birds of prey are grouped in the Strifidae family. Let us remember that in this order of birds of prey there are also species with diurnal habits. However, below we will show examples of nocturnal birds with their main characteristics:
Barn Owl (Tyto alba)
It is an excellent nocturnal hunter that lives in a wide variety of habitats, being very common to find it in urban environments. It is a cosmopolitan species and reaches about 40 cm in length However, its most notable characteristic is its beautiful white color with dots that dot its ventral part.
Eagle owl (Bubo bubo)
This is a species that inhabits Europe, Russia and Asia. It inhabits various environments, being common in wooded, semi-desert areas and in the tundra. It measures about 80 cm, its wingspan reaches about 2 meters and it has a striated and cryptic design that covers its body and feathers as "ears".
Discover more curiosities about this species in this article: "Feeding of the eagle owl".
Barred Owl (Strix hylophila)
This type of bird of prey occupies jungles and forests of Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina. It is a very elusive bird that is often easier to hear than to see. Its size is medium, about 40 cm in length and it has a very striking design with light and dark bands that cover its body and a black facial disk.
If you want to know more types of owls, don't miss this article: "Types of owls".
European Scops Owl (Otus scops)
Distributed in Europe, Asia and Africa, the Eurasian Scops Owl inhabits forests and areas near rivers, although it can also be observed in urban and peri-urban areas. It has a very cryptic plumage, like the rest of the strigiformes, and it is the smallest species of owl in the Iberian Peninsula, with only about 20 cm of length. For this reason, it is one of the best-known small birds of prey in existence.
Boreal Owl (Aegolius funereus)
Species that occupies northern Europe, it is possible to see it in areas of the Balkans, Pyrenees and the Alps, being par excellence the species of owl of mountains and coniferous forests. It measures approximately 25 cm, so it is another of the small birds of prey. It is characterized by having a quite large head that attracts attention and with black lines as "eyebrows" that surround the face.
Other birds of prey
After reviewing some of the most representative examples of birds of prey in each group, we end with a list with more names of birds of prey:
- Common Sparrowhawk (Accipiter nisus) - Diurnal bird of prey
- Red Kite (Milvus milvus) – Diurnal Bird of Prey
- Black Kite (Milvus migrans) – Diurnal bird of prey
- Soaring Hawk (Circus buffoni) - Diurnal bird of prey
- Black Owl (Ciccaba huhhula) – Nocturnal bird of prey
- Tawny Owl (Strix aluco) – Nocturnal bird of prey
- Solitary Eagle (Harpyhaliaetus solitarius) – Diurnal bird of prey
- Long-legged Sparrowhawk (Geranospiza caerulescens) – Diurnal bird of prey
- White-legged Owl (Strix albitarsis) - Nocturnal bird of prey
- African fish owl (Scotopelia peli) – Nocturnal bird of prey
- Blackish Owl (Asio stygius) – Nocturnal bird of prey
- Iberian imperial eagle (Aquila adalberti) – Diurnal bird of prey
- Brown Owl (Strix virgata)- Nocturnal bird of prey
- Spectacled Owl (Pulsatrix perspicillata) – Nocturnal bird of prey
- Kernicale (Falco tinnunculus) – Diurnal bird of prey
- White Matamico (Phalcoboenus megalopterus) – Diurnal bird of prey
- Bug Buzzard (Buteo buteo) – Diurnal bird of prey
- Common Alilicucu (Megascops choliba) – Nocturnal bird of prey
- Cinnamon Owl (Aegolius harrisii) – Nocturnal bird of prey
- Booted Eagle (Hieraaetus pennatus) - Diurnal bird of prey
